Proposal to expand two special schools in Bristol - Briarwood School and Kingsweston School

Bristol City Council has a legal duty under the Children and Families Act 2014 to put in place enough SEND school places that are high quality and provide good value for money. We are making these proposals in response to more demand for special educational needs places in Bristol. We have also put forward these proposal to make sure the system and facilities for children and young people with SEND in Bristol are suitable, sustainable and well-maintained.

The Proposals 

In accordance with Section 19(1) of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 (as amended by the Education Act 2011) and the School Organisation (Prescribed Alterations to Maintained Schools) (England) Regulations 2013, Bristol City Council are proposing the following changes: 

• Briarwood School - to increase the number of places from 168 to 234 from September 2026, including establishing Throgmorton House as a satellite site (to be known as Briarwood South). The satellite site would be located at 10a Throgmorton Road, Knowle West, Bristol, BS4 1HR. 

• Kingsweston School - to increase the number of places from 180 to 201 from November 2026, including moving 21 students from Claremont School to Kingsweston School as a result of the Claremont School transfer which is part of the Bristol City Council Education Capital Programme. 

By expanding the capacity of these schools we would build on the strengths of existing schools with strong Ofsted outcomes. These schools have established expertise in delivering inclusive, high-quality provision. They support a range of needs including complex learning difficulties, autism, sensory needs, and specific learning difficulties. 

The expansions would increase capacity to meet demand and improve outcomes by enabling more children to access local education that is suitable to their needs. The additional places created through these expansions would begin to be available from September 2026, helping to reduce reliance on out of area placements and supporting parental choice without negatively impacting other local provision.

These projects form part of the wider £53.1m Bristol SEND Education Capital Programme, funded through Department for Education High Needs allocations, which will deliver 569 additional places by 2030.  The schools would be responsible for staffing and resources, and the local authority and the schools have worked together to financially model the provision to make sure it is affordable and will not impact upon any other budgets.